Reflecting on Reflections

I was sitting in the front seat of a taxi recently (actually I was sharing the front seat with another girl:) and after introducing myself to our driver I mentioned that I thought his country was beautiful. His response was interesting. He said "Yes, but it is not reflective of us." I asked him to explain what he meant and he told me that the government and the state of Sierra Leone as it is right now does not really reflect what the people of Sierra Leone are like. I would have to say I agree with him.

Since then I have been thinking about how we represent ourselves to the world around us. I would hope I represent Jesus Christ well enough for people to know Him through my life. He is the only example I consider worthwhile to follow. I know there are so many times when I let myself obscure my reflection of Him. These are the things I need to work on. The more I see of the world, the more people I meet in it, and the more cultures I encounter, the more I am convinced that all I want and all I want people to see me being like is Jesus.

A few weeks ago I had the joy and privilege of spending a few hours talking with Clementine Tengue. Clementine has been with Mercy Ships in West Africa for about 14 years and currently leads the patient life ministry here. She is the one who counsels all the patients onboard. When someone is terminal Clementine has to tell them, if they are diagnosed with HIV she is the one who tells them, and when they need someone to talk to about surviving the war here she is the one who listens to them. She gets called down to the wards day and night and often over the weekends. Someone who did not have the strength of Christ as an example would quickly run out of energy beneath the weight of all this. Clementine, however, has Christ and that quickly becomes evident when talking with her. She overflows with a calm,peaceful joy. You can clearly see how much she loves the patients. Her example has prompted people to want to follow Christ themselves.

So Clementine is my prayer request that I am sending back to all of you. She has asked me to ask you all to pray for her because she knows that it is prayer that enables her to continue on every day. Pray that Clementine will continue to model Christ to people, that God will continue to direct her words and actions with hurting people, and please pray that she would be given a designated office to counsel patients in. Clementine has demonstrated Christ to me; I pray that I demonstrate Him to you:)

Isimbi Johanna

For Love of a Continent

Recently I was returning to the ship after being out in Freetown all day and I was reminded again that love comes from God. I was crammed into the backseat of a poda-poda (public taxi van) shoved into the smelly armpit of the guy next to me and my favorite Sierra Leone hip-hop song was blaring through the poda-poda. I had a pounding headache from walking in the sun all day and not drinking enough water. I also realized that I had no idea where I was going. It was already dark out and I couldn't recognise where we were. The one overwhelming feeling I had in the midst of all this was great happiness.

I love being here in Africa. A love that somehow comes straight from God. I have had just enough glimpses of his great love for this continent that it makes me love it too. He died to redeem this place and these people. Living here on the ship is not like being in Africa. It is a comfortable bubble which is fine for all the crewmembers coming and going; as for me, I would spend all of my time out in the country if I could. Living the way the people here do, eating what they eat, and learning what they know. I love having discussions with the people of Sierra Leone. They have a great freedom of speech and really enjoy debating. It is fascinating for me to see the world through their eyes.

So during the week I work scrubbing away at bloody instruments and studying to become certified as an OR sterilizer. It is good work and I enjoy it. On the weekends I go out into the country. I walk around or ride in poda-podas to the houses of my friends here in Sierra Leone. Usually we share a meal together and I am reminded how much I love being in Africa.

Isimbi Johanna

Tropical Paradise (almost)

My plan was to update everyone weekly so sorry for falling behind. Let me backtrack a bit.

This past weekend we had a ship's holiday on Friday so I spent the 3 days beach hopping around Freetown. Picture if you can the most beautiful beach you have ever been to...with warm white sand, clear blue water, big lush palm trees all over, and rolling green hills in the backgrouond. Now take away any people except you and a few fisherman and that is exactly what the beaches here are like. Like I said Sierra Leone is a very beautiful country.

The only drawback, particularly for someone like me who can't swim, are the riptides which can pull you out to sea. The waves could not be more different than the ones I am used to in NH. For one thing they are so warm that it reminded of being in a hot tub; unfortunately they are also so powerful that I don't even attempt to swim. Once I went in only to my waist and I got picked up by a rather small looking wave, swirled around in the water and slammed down onto the sand. New crew members coming to the ship get briefed on what to do if they get caught in a riptide. Sadly a few years ago 2 crewmembers were killed by riptides so it is definitely a safety concern. Hence my no swimming decision. Otherwise though, the beaches are awe-inspiring.

My favorite beach out of 3 I went to was called River Number 2. This beach was incredibly beautiful but it is the history of the place that inspires me. It is a completely community run beach. During the war the village banded together to survive. They buried their valuables in the sand and sent all the women and children out to Banana Island where the rebels could not swim out to them. After making it through the war together they noticed that their beach was a popular spot for foreigners and decided amongst themselves to make some beach chairs and tables and charge a small fee for using them. Next they got a generator. This started what has become an amazing story of what happens when people work together. Due to proceeds from the beach and wisely using them to benefit everyone the people there now have solar panels that provide electricity for the whole village, a well to give everyone access to water, an emergency health fund, a nursery school, a beach guesthouse (where we stayed), and a small craft market. We were blessed to meet the manager of the beach and hear more of the history from him. They even adopted a house of amputees* and integrated them into the community. Truly, it is an uplifting story to me. People can be very evil and destructive I know so it is good to be reminded of what people can also do to bring health and safety.

I will be sure to write sooner next time!

Isimbi Johanna

*There are many people with missing arms or legs in Sierra Leone. It was a common practice of the rebels , among many other senseless horrors, to cut of people's limbs simply because they could.

Africa at 3 am

On Friday I took a 9 hour bus ride away from Freetown going towards Kono district to visit the families of a few of the day workers here on the ship. African bus journeys and I are old friends. When the 6 of us got to the bus they had sold our seats, even though we had tickets, however it is Africa so they brought out some blue plastic stools and we spent the 9 hours perched on them in the aisle. Like I said I am used to this. And oddly enough I find it uncomfortable but fun.

Sierra Leone is a very beautiful country; lush and green, with palm trees all over the landscape. We drove past what was formerly a serious rebel checkpoint during the war and straight on to diamond country. Apparently Kono is the place to get diamonds but as I do not like them myself I didn't pursue it. Kono is a town rebuilding itself. Amazingly, bombing, war, and indiscriminate mining have not been able to destroy the peaceful beauty of this place.

We spent Sarurday getting food at the market and then cooking it. A great experience for anyone who has never prepared a meal in Africa before which 2 of our group had not. I specially requested fufu since I can't get it in the states and I miss the food in Africa so much. Fufu, which is also known as ugali in East Africa, is ground up cassava which is made into a paste and then boiled in water until it thickens into something like a dough. It is served with a sauce or soup for flavor and the whole meal should be eaten with your hands. I love cooking outside beneath a tree and then sharing the meal with everyone on one plate. We should eat like this in America. It is good communion.

This morning we had to catch a bus back to Freetown at 4 in the morning. The 3 girls in our group were staying at a little guesthouse so we planned to leave there at 3 to get to the bus early. As fun as sitting on a stool over pothole filled roads is it is best to be avoided if possible. You get airborn enough in the seats as it is. Although I think the roads here are miles better than in Kenya.

We were about to leave the gate of our little compound at 3 to meet one of the guys who was picking us up but he wasn't there yet. As we were walking towards the door to wait for him on the street the security gaurd came running towards us protesting vehemently that we not leave. Being a rather cynical person I assumed he wanted to make sure we had paid our bill and weren't trying to sneak out in the dark. We didn't speak Kono and he didn't speak much English so he went and woke someone else up. Turns out he takes his job seriously and he would not let us walk out there in the dark because he was worried for our safety. We decided to wait inside. The security guard, an older man, kept saying "I yo papa, yo ma pickanins" to explain why he wouldn't let us go out there. He meant that he was our papa and we were like his children.

I love being in Africa. Sure sometimes I have been in threatening situations but for every person who would harm me there are more like the security guard. Africa lifts my spirits when I am sad, grieves me when I am feeling complacent, and alway always fills me with joy. All in all I thank God for my weekend because I got to spend it in Africa.

Isimbi Johanna

P.S. We made it to the bus with plenty of time to get seats and watch Celine Dion music videos for an hour before we left:)

A Day in the Life of an OR Sterilizer

Hi people,

I have been too busy to update you all but now I will tell you why.

I work Monday through Friday from 10am until 7pm down on deck 3 of the ship in the OR sterilizing room. I like it a lot actually, plus I have weekends of:)

Here's how it works. When the surgeon is finishing up in any of the ORs, which are down the hall from us, the nurse brings us the trays of equipment that were just used. We take them and clean the blood off to get them ready to go in a special washing machine. Once we have run a full load in there we take them out, dry them off, reassemble each surgical tray by making sure all the needed instruments are there, wrap them in layers of cloth like a present, and put them in the sterilizer. After they come out of there each tray and instrument is now sterile amd ready to be used when needed. It is a very detailed and time consuming process. I like it.

I am very impressed with how well run the Africa Mercy is. Somehow, really by the grace of God, the people here have managed to make a hospital, a bank, a school, a restaurant, a hotel, and a ship all operate smoothly together with people from 33 different nationalities onboard coming and going each week. And all this is done from a different country every year! As you can imagine it is no small task but like I said I am impressed. In the midst of all this the focus is still on God. He is the only one who could pull all that together and turn it into something that glorifies Him.

I have not had much opportunity yet to leave the ship. I walked around town last saturday and on sunday went to a wonderful church called Word of Faith. I love worship in Africa! Tomorrow I am going to a chimpanzee sanctuary which should be interesting. I just want to be outside. The one downside of where I work is that it has no windows and neither does my cabin. I ate my dinner outside on deck 7 tonight and the sun was so bright on the water it hurt to look at it. Still it was beautiful.

I will let you all now how the chimps are:)

Isimbi Johanna

My boy Nqobisitha

This afternoon I hung 4 pictures up above my little bed. There were 2 pictures of my siblings and I, which I find very supporting when I am feeling lonely, a picture of Silivia my baby girl in Uganda laughing, which just makes me happy to look at, and a picture Nqobisitha sitting on the ground in Zimbabwe, which is a particularly acute motivator when I am feeling tired. I stood there looking at them afterwards and I realized that he, Nqobisitha, is a big reason a came back here to Africa.

I think about this little boy almost every single day. He is one of 2 people that I cry about the most when I think of them. He would be about 10-years old now and most likely still has no mother. I am not completely sure why but God has laid Nqobi on my heart so intensely that sometimes I feel nearly as if I am grieving over my lost son when I think about him. Right now I can't feed him, or wash him, or make sure he is happy and not hurt so instead I came here to the Africa Mercy where at least in the long run I am helping kids like him.

I don't know if I made much of an impact on Nqobisitha; I spent a few nights feeding him, holding him in my arms while he fell asleep, and whispering prayers in his ear that he would grow up healthy and strong and loving God. He ,however, has certainly made an impact on me. It is this I find that I am thinking the most my first week back here in Africa.

I finally have an opportunity to go off the ship today and see Freetown. I was starting to feel trapped onboard here so I called my parents earlier and told them about it and they said they would be praying for me. An hour later I walked out of my cabin and immediately got an invitation to go to the market:) Thanks parents! It is an encouraging reminder to me of how my heavenly Father cares for me.

Next time I will have to tell you about cleaning surgical instruments all day! Talk to you later!

Isimbi Johanna

Africa Baby

I was speaking with an elderly man from Nigeria recently who yelled out "Africa!" as I walked by him. This was because I have talked with him about Africa before. I went over to him and he took my hand and called me an "Africa baby."

I suppose that is as good a description of me as any other. In a funny way I feel almost as if I grew up in Africa. Certainly as a Christian at least. In many ways it feels almost like going home when I return there but in many other ways I am glad it is not. The truth is that when my immune system can no longer fight back and when I am immensely saddened to hold another sick or dying child that I can do so little for I always have the option of America. To step back and take a break from grinding poverty is a luxury that the majority of Africans never know.

I am going back to Africa tomorrow; specifically to Sierra Leone. I miss the wet, earthy smell of Africa that hits you the second you step of the plane, the graceful women walking along the road with tremendous loads on their heads, and the beautiful malnourished children who smile with such joy it makes me think they must have been playing with Jesus Himself.

More than anything else I miss the intensely up close and personal way I encounter my Lord God in Africa. Africa strips away your comfort and complacency and challenges you to make a decision: there is either a loving God of the Bible or there isn't. It makes sense to me to conclude that there is because who else but a God like Him could enable people to live with such beauty surrounded by such suffering. I miss seeing God like that. I have realized that Africa equips me to serve people better in America.

By Monday evening I will have arrived in Freetown, Sierra Leone to begin 3 months working as an OR sterilizer with Mercy Ships. That will be good but mostly I am excited to spend time with God in Africa again:)

Talk to you all from the ship!
Isimbi Johanna